Switzerland includes three physical regions that are structurally and morphologically well differentiated: to the S a large alpine area (which exceeds 60% of the total land area), in the center a pre-alpine and foothill belt, the so-called Mittelland, Plateau or Altopiano (27% of the ‘total area), to the NW finally a series of chains making up the Jura. Switzerland occupies the northern side of the central-western section of the Alps (Pennine, Lepontine and Rhaetian Alps), with the exception of the valleys of Lei and Livigno which belong to Italy). Switzerland also occupies sections of the southern slope of the aforementioned Alps, in correspondence with the upper basin of the Ticino river (Cantons Ticino and Grisons) and other small areas (Simplon in the Valais; Bregaglia, Poschiavo and Monastero valleys in the Grisons). The origin of these areas is relatively recent because they were formed mainly in the Cenozoic, with the great alpine corrugation, responsible both for the actual alpine orogeny and for the slippage of the sedimentary layers that make up the Mittelland and the Jura. In the innermost arc of the Alpine chain, granite and metamorphic rocks (gnèiss, schist etc.) which, exposed by atmospheric agents, today show harsh slopes and pointed peaks; in the outermost arc, as well as in the pre-Alpine area, the sedimentary formations of the Mesozoic predominate, a time when a vast marine ingression interested the region; however they are frequently covered by Cenozoic molasses and other more recent soils. In the Quaternary era the action of the ice was intense, which is responsible for the shaping of the valleys (in particular the Mittelland is thickly furrowed), the vast hollows now occupied by lakes and the morainic deposits. It is customary to distinguish the Swiss Alps into southern and northern, divided by the Rhone (Valais) furrow which has its tectonic continuation to the E, in the Rhine valley. Visit healthvv.com for Switzerland as a destination country.
The southern Alps develop from Mont Dolent (3820 m) in the Monte group Bianco, to the west, up to the Silvrétta massif; include the Valais Alps (Pennine), with the superb peaks of the Grand Combin (4314 m), the Matterhorn (4478 m), Weisshorn (4505 m), Monte Rosa (Punta Dufour, 4634 m), the Ticino Alps (Lepontine), with Monte Basodino (3273 m) and Rheinwaldhorn (3402 m), in the Adula, and further to the E the Graubünden (Rhaetian) Alps, culminating in the Bernina (4050 m). The Northern Alps include the Bernese Alps, dominated by the Finsteraarhorn group (4274 m) around which rise the imposing granite piers of the Jungfrau (4158 m) and the Aletschhorn (4195 m), with the great Aletsch glacier(101.7 km²), the largest in the Alps and continental Europe; the Uri and Glarus Alps follow, lower than the previous ones, with peaks below 4000 m (Dammastock, 3630 m; Tödi, 3620 m). Large valley furrows fragment the Alpine region and communicate with each other through numerous passes, passes and hills. The central node of the Swiss Alps is the San Gottardo, an extraordinary meeting point of the valleys of the Rhine, Aare, Reuss, Rhone and Ticino, i.e. at the intersection of two great systems of valleys, one longitudinal and the other transversal. Another fundamental longitudinal furrow is the Engadine, the Inn valley, which crosses the Grisons. Among the main passes are mentioned, in addition to the San Gottardo, the Gran San Bernardo and the Simplon (Valais Alps), the San Bernardino (Ticino and Grisons Alps), the Spluga, the Maloja (Maloggia) and the Bernina (Grisons Alps), the Grimsel (between the Bernese Alps and those of Uri). The Prealps, with the exception of the limited S strip of the southern slope, in the Valais, in the Canton of Ticino and in the Grisons, extend to the N of the northern Alps, from the Rhone valley to the Säntis massif(2502 m), near the Liechtenstein border. The most significant peaks are the Pilatus(2129 m) and the Rigi (1797 m), in the area of Lake Lucerne. The large Alpine foreland, the Mittelland, is often called the Swiss Plateau, although it is in fact a continuous succession of hills, deep valleys, small plains. It gently declines from the subalpine belt, at approx. 600 m of altitude, towards the lower stretch of the Aare river, a fundamental structural line of division of the Swiss territory, as this wide longitudinal depression separates the Mittelland (and in a broader sense Alpine Switzerland) from the Jura, whose reliefs extend to NW, along the French border. The Jura system, with a generally rounded morphology, is made up of Mesozoic layers, almost completely calcareous, affected by showy karst phenomena. The southwestern section forms the so-called Pleated Jura, as the layers are folded into anticlines and synclines which occur rather regularly. Between the bundles of chains there are longitudinal valleys (there are no transversal ones, so frequent in the Alps), covered by more recent soils.
To the NE, on the other hand, towards the Rhine, the folds are missing (Tabular Jura) and in the slightly oblique strata the running waters have cut valleys of erosion, which separate tabular reliefs. The shares are relatively modest everywhere; only in the folded Jura do you exceed 1600 m (Mont Tendre, 1679 m, NW of Lausanne; La Dôle, 1667 m, N of Geneva). Generally, the southern flank of the Jura slopes slowly towards the north, while the southern flank descends rapidly towards the Mittelland. they interpose longitudinal valleys (there are no transversal ones, so frequent in the Alps), covered by more recent soils. To the NE, on the other hand, towards the Rhine, the folds are missing (Tabular Jura) and in the slightly oblique strata the running waters have cut valleys of erosion, which separate tabular reliefs. The shares are relatively modest everywhere; only in the folded Jura do you exceed 1600 m (Mont Tendre, 1679 m, NW of Lausanne; La Dôle, 1667 m, N of Geneva). Generally, the southern flank of the Jura slopes slowly towards the north, while the southern flank descends rapidly towards the Mittelland. they interpose longitudinal valleys (there are no transversal ones, so frequent in the Alps), covered by more recent soils. To the NE, on the other hand, towards the Rhine, the folds are missing (Tabular Jura) and in the slightly oblique strata the running waters have cut valleys of erosion, which separate tabular reliefs. The shares are relatively modest everywhere; only in the folded Jura do you exceed 1600 m (Mont Tendre, 1679 m, NW of Lausanne; La Dôle, 1667 m, N of Geneva). Generally, the southern flank of the Jura slopes slowly towards the north, while the southern flank descends rapidly towards the Mittelland. the folds are missing (Tabular Jura) and in the slightly oblique layers the running waters have cut valleys of erosion, which separate tabular reliefs. The shares are relatively modest everywhere; only in the folded Jura do you exceed 1600 m (Mont Tendre, 1679 m, NW of Lausanne; La Dôle, 1667 m, N of Geneva). Generally, the southern flank of the Jura slopes slowly towards the north, while the southern flank descends rapidly towards the Mittelland. the folds are missing (Tabular Jura) and in the slightly oblique layers the running waters have cut valleys of erosion, which separate tabular reliefs. The shares are relatively modest everywhere; only in the folded Jura do you exceed 1600 m (Mont Tendre, 1679 m, NW of Lausanne; La Dôle, 1667 m, N of Geneva). Generally, the southern flank of the Jura slopes slowly towards the north, while the southern flank descends rapidly towards the Mittelland.
